


Blood on Blood

by zeldadestry



Category: Heroes - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fusion, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-08-01
Updated: 2008-08-01
Packaged: 2017-10-10 09:52:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/98350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zeldadestry/pseuds/zeldadestry
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He hopes the day never comes, but if it does, he'll do whatever he has to do. He'll never turn his back on his brother.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Blood on Blood

**Author's Note:**

> Alternate Universe, title and inspiration from Springsteen's song 'Highway Patrolman'

He has always worried about Peter.

Peter's a good kid, he knows that. Peter's a good kid, but trouble seems to follow him.

Nathan's a good cop. He's an honest cop, as honest as anyone can be in the job.

Sometimes, when he's almost finished typing up his reports, when he's feeling proud for getting it done, congratulations in order, a rough voice snarls up from deep inside him. "What if it was Peter? What the hell are you gonna do on the day it's Peter?" Sometimes Nathan thinks the only reason he became a cop was so that he could keep on protecting Peter, always protecting Peter, no matter what he does.

He knows what he would do, no matter the crime. Peter's a good kid, everyone knows it.

If he sometimes gets into trouble, it's not his fault.

He hopes the day never comes, but if it does, he'll do whatever he has to do. He'll never turn his back on his brother.

 

Late night phone call, and Nathan quickly quashes his hope that it's anything but trouble. He's got his gun in his hand by the time he picks up the phone. "Peter needs my help," he tells Heidi.

Heidi usually says: Go, make sure he's alright. Tonight, she stares at him, eyes narrowing like she doesn't want to see him, like she's shutting him out. "I'm sick of this," she says. "Don't you dare bring him home this time." He gets out of bed, is heading to the bathroom when her sharp voice stops him. "I don't want him around my boys."

"They're my boys, too, and I know he would never hurt them. He's not dangerous."

Heidi wraps her robe tighter around her body, feeble armor that will fail to protect her, all the while shaking her head. "You heard me, Nathan," she insists. "Don't bring him home."

"Alright, alright," he says, putting his arms around her, kissing her face, whispering comfort into her ears to try and bring her back on his side. He tries to convince her she's worried over nothing, but how can he? He's seen Peter talking to too many people he doesn't recognize, and they all seem to carry danger with them.

 

The latest to die is Simone, a woman Peter had been involved with, a woman he said he loved. The weapon was a gun, which is almost a relief after some of the bizarre homicides they've seen recently, people with the tops of their heads missing and other shit so disgusting his stomach twists for days afterwards whenever he thinks of it.

Down at the precinct they tell him that Peter's not responsible. They've just been holding him there until Nathan could pick him up. One of his officers, who's a hell of an ass-kisser, thank god, handled the interrogation and gives him the report. It's crazy talk, all about the victim's ex-boyfriend. Peter claims he's an artist who can paint the future.

 

When he walks into the holding room Peter's slumped in the corner, his head in his hands. He raises his eyes when he hears Nathan say his name. "This is my fault. He was trying to shoot me, not her. He thought it was me." Someone trying to shoot Peter? It's out of his nightmares. He drags his brother up off the floor and into his arms. He knows the blood stains will never come off and he doesn't care. As long as it's not Peter's blood, he never cares.

 

He gets Peter into the car, and as they leave the garage he turns towards downtown.

"Where are we going?" Peter asks.

"I'm taking you home."

Peter clutches at his arm. "But I want to go home with you."

"Not tonight, Pete."

In Pete's apartment he turns a single dim light on, goes into the kitchen to get a glass of water. Pete has already stripped off his clothes; he sits on the edge of his bed in his boxers, staring out the window. He takes the glass when Nathan offers it, takes one sip and then leaves it on the bedside table. He reaches up and tugs on Nathan's sleeve. "Sit down." Nathan sits down on the edge of the bed, and Peter rests his head on his brother's shoulder. "I'm scared I'm gonna lose you. Promise me, promise me."

"I promise," Nathan says, though he doesn't know what he's swearing.

"I love you," Peter says. Nathan closes his eyes and keeps his arms around Peter. All his life, the only times he has believed those words are when Peter has spoken them. Peter doesn't lie, but there are secrets inside him. "There are dangerous people in this world, and they want to hurt us."

"I know," Nathan says, a little annoyed, as always, when Peter says cynical things, annoyed because it's Nathan's job to know these things, annoyed because he comforts himself in knowing them by imagining Peter doesn't have to because he does.

"Do you?" Peter says. "I hope you don't know the things I know. Have you ever met a man named Gabriel?"

"I don't know. Maybe. What's the last name?"

"Gray."

"No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, Pete, I am. You know how good I am with names."

"Good," Peter says. "Good."

"You need to sleep."

"Will you stay here?"

"I shouldn't."

"Please."

 

In the morning Nathan gets up and showers quickly so that he won't have to stop at home before he heads to work for his shift. When he comes out of the bathroom, towel wrapped around his waist, Pete is there holding out a mug of coffee. "I woke up when you got out of bed," he explains, his eyes traveling down Nathan's body. "You're still wet," he says, brushing his fingertips up Nathan's belly.

"I gotta get to work, Pete," he warns, though he would never leave without hugging Pete goodbye. He gets these crazy horrible ideas in his head that he doesn't know when, if, he'll have Peter in his arms again.

"Nathan," Pete murmurs against his cheek. "Did you dream about flying? I did."

 

"I've looked past a lot since we've been together," Heidi says when she sees the papers. "But I can't look past this. People stare at me, at the children, they point and whisper. People are saying Peter's crazy and speculating if madness runs in the family."

"Fuck them."

"How many people have to die around him before you realize he's dangerous?"

"He's my brother. He needs me and I'm not going to abandon him."

"He can't stay here, Nathan. And neither can you."

 

He meets Nikki at a bar after Heidi kicks him out. She's easy to talk to, he doesn't feel like she's judging him. Her eyes tell him she's seen it all, but she listens to him anyway, listens with as much sympathy as though his is the saddest story she's ever heard. "I can imagine what it was like growing up with only each other," she says. "Peter only had you to look up to and to protect him. Believe me, I understand."

"Do you?"

"Yes." She drops her gaze, looks down into her drink. "I had a sister, once."

"I'm sorry," he says, and doesn't press her for more.

She looks up again, gives him her beautiful rueful smile. "Is there anyone in this world you love as much as your brother?"

"No."

"Good." She rests her head on his shoulder. "That's how it should be."

 

Peter's dancing with Nikki, an arm around her waist, and Nathan comes up and stands behind her. She leans back and rests against him and he kisses the side of her face, her neck, raises his eyes to meet Peter's. He reaches his hand out to rest on Pete's forearm, and they sway together, all three of them, for a moment. And then Nikki slips out of their grasp and steps apart, watches them watching each other. "I'm going to leave you two alone," she says. "Good night." Nathan kisses her and cups her ass, then watches her leave.

"She understands?" Pete says, startled.

"Yeah, she does."

 

He gets there first, like he's always prayed. The scene is gruesome, and he turns aside for a moment.

Pete's shaking. "I had to do it, Nathan. You don't understand how dangerous this guy is. He was going to kill us all! I had to do it. He's the one I told you about. Gabriel Gray. Sylar. He hunts people like us and kills them and takes their powers. He's the murderer you've been looking for."

"You killed him."

"He attacked me! I had to fight back!"

"You killed someone." This is Nathan's worst nightmare. He would have killed a hundred men to stop Peter from doing it once.

"Nathan," Peter says, stepping up in front of him, and grabbing his arm when he tries to turn away. "Are you fucking listening to me? I would be dead if I didn't fight back." They can hear sirens in the distance. This is it. There's no way they're going to get Pete out of this one in time.

Nathan tries to strategize. "We can't take the car, they know what it looks like, they know the plate number. You can run, but that means we'll have to split up."

"No. There's another way. We both know it. There's another way and we can go together, if you'll take me."

"I can't," Nathan says, but he takes Peter's hand and they leave the building, stand together in the back alley, looking up at the sky above them. "I don't know if I can."

"You can, I know you can." Nathan closes his eyes, Peter in his arms, he closes his eyes and he pictures Peter in jail, prison, for the rest of his life, Peter grown gaunt, bruises under his eyes, never seeing his brother alone again, only through glass, or in the yard, never touching him again. He can't let them put Peter in a cage.

Freedom. It's all that matters now.

And it's like he's done it before, like dreaming it is no different than living it, and his feet, their feet, lift off the ground.


End file.
